Can-opener



E. O. MURMANN.

CAN OPENER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 10, 1919.

1,338,643. Patented Apr. 27, 1920.

Inwnior .E'zzyene O.Murmarzn y 77%2226 M WMQ hisAfZoz-neys UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE.

EUGENE O. MURMANN, OF GLENDALE, CALIFORNIA.

CAN-OPENER.

Application filed March 10, 1919.

To (4Z6 whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EUGENE 0. Mon- MANN, a citizen of Russia, residingat Glendale, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, haveinvented new and useful Improvements in Can-Openers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to a can opener which cuts downwardly through thetop of a can..

Heretofore, can openers which operate with a shearing reciprocatingmovement have been constructed to cut upwardly through the cap top,thereby tearing the top and leaving a ragged edge projecting upwardly.It is the principal object of my invention to provide a can opener whichwill cut downwardly, thereby forcing the out edge inwardly. It is afurther object of this invention to provide a can opener which will cutclose to the edge of a can, and will operate on cans of any contour.

I accomplish these objects by means of the embodiment of my inventionillustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is an elevation of the can opener with the knife and fulcrumhandles separated; Fig. 2 is a fragmentary bottom view as seen on theline 2.2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an end view showing the knife and fulcrummember closed and applied to a can shown in section; and Fig. 4 is aperspective view showing the opener in its initial position beingapplied to a can.

More specifically a can is indicated by A and the opener by B. The canis of the type having a cylindrical wall 5 and a top 6. The top issecured to the wall 5 by crimping the edge forming a lip 7.

Referring to the can opener, it comprises a knife handle 8, preferablyformed of metal and having a knife blade 9 thereon. The knife blade hasa point 10 and a cutting edge 11. The blade is warped so that the rearis offset from the handle as indicated in Figs. 2 and 3. The point 10 isalso offset. A hook 12 is formed on the blade to serve as means forremoving crown seal caps.

Pivotally secured to the knife and handle by means of a pivot pin 13 isa fulcrum member having a handle 14 and an extension 15. The end ofextension 15 is bent inwardly as indicated by 16 in Fig. 3. Formed onthe inner face of the extension 15 and above the offset portion 16 is afulcrum lug 17, which is designed to engage the under Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Apr. 2'7, 1920.

Serial No. 281,759.

side of the lip 7 of the can when cutting the top. When the cutting isbeing performed, handles 8 and 14 are brought together so that blade 9and the extension 15 are in j 11X- taposition. In this position it wouldbe difficult to apply the opener to the can, and for this reason thefulcrum member and knife member are made movable with respect to oneanother. By opening the handles, the blade'lO is swung away from infront of pivot lug 17. Thus the point of the knife blade can be forcedinto the top of the can as shown in Fig. 4 without being hindered orobstructed by the fulcrum member. The handles 8 and 14 are then closedwith the "pivot lug resting underneath the lip of the can. as shown. inFig. 3. The operator grasps the two handles as if they were one and thenpresses downwardly. The downward movement of the handles causes theknife blade to cut through the top of the can, and at the same time itflattens the ragged edge against the side of the can. The handle islifted. and the opener is pulled. toward the operator until the cuttingedge comes in contact with the end of the slit just made in the top ofthe can. The operation is repeated and in this manner the top of the canis opened. WVhen the last stroke has been made, the handles 8 and 14 arespread apart, thus permitting easy removal of the opener.

The offsetting of the end of the fulcrum member permits the latter to bedisposed under the lip of the can when the can opener is in cuttingposition and prevents wabbling of the opener. The warped knife bladeprovides for cutting the rounded corners on cans of general rectangularshape.

lVhat I claim is:

1. A can opener comprising a handle having a knife thereon for cuttingdownwardly, and a fulcrum member having a fulcrum at its forward end fordisposal beneath the lip of a can, said fulcrum member and knife wardedge for disposal beneath the lip of a can so that it may be swung intoposition to be covered by the penetrating tip of said knife in cuttingposition said fulcrum memher having means disposed along side of saidhandle whereby to maintain said knife and fulcrum in cutting position.

3. A can opener comprising a handle having a knife thereon for cuttingdownwardly, and a fulcrum member having a fulcrum at its forward end fordisposal beneath the lip of a can, said fulcrum being a projection sothat said member may rock upon said lip,

said fulcrum member and said knife being movably secured in spacedparallel relation so that the penetrating tip of said knife may be movedinto cutting position to cover said fulcrum, said fulcrum member havingmeans disposed along side of saidhandle whereby to maintain said knifeand fulcrum in cutting position.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my namethis 1st day of March, 1919.

EUGENE O. MURMANN.

